ensuring the competitiveness of the solutions that are chosen, to maintain employmentand households' purchasing power,

investing in R&D to prepare for the energy of the future,

exploit the opportunities connected with the latest technologies,

help with the development of CO2 capture, transportation and storage technologies,

seek out major hydroelectric infrastructure projects within a local sustainabledevelopment policy.

LaRance

Tidal Barrage was built in the 1960's near St.Malo

in France. A dam 330metres

long was build in front of a 22 square kilometer basin. The tidal range (the differencebetween high and low tides) averages 8metres

and reach up to 13.5metres. The plantconsists of 24 bulb type turbine generators 5.35metres

in diameter, 470tonnes

in weight,and rated at 10MW each which generate electricity whether the tide is going in or out(developed bylectricité

de France). This peak of 240MW of power is sufficient to power4% of the homes in Brittany-

equivalent to the consumption of a town the size of Rennes.The average power generated is 68MW for an annual output of around 600 million kWhunits of electricity. In November 1996 the LaRance

tidal power plant celebrated 30 yearsof active service during which time 16 billion kWh of electricity were generated withoutmajor incident or mechanical breakdown. The initial capital cost of the power plant (620million Francs) has long since been recovered, and the cost of electricity production is nowbelow 0.02 Euro per kWh.

Company/Organization-

PoleMer

Bretagne

Technology/Plant Name-

Marenergie

Technology Genre-

Horizontal Axis Turbine-

Ducted

Power take-off system–

Unspecified

Use the force of tidal currents to generate electricity, is the idea of​​societyHydrohelix

whogathered around the project MARENERGIE / SABELLA, eight companies and researchcenters. The partners are developing the offshore installation of a first turbine of 200 kW:a large diameter turbine, coupled to an electric generator that will transform the kineticenergy of tidal currents into electrical energy sent by cable to the coast. After a test period,a 1 MW module production consists of five turbines will be connected to the network.

The use of tidal, astronomical origin, predictable power and not subject to the vagaries ofweather, is one of the answers to the reduction of fossil fuels, diversification of sources,and use of renewable energy and not generating greenhouse gases

Company/Organization-

Fluid

Mechanics

Laboratory

-

colede

Nantes

Technology/Plant Name-

Searev

Technology Genre-

Absorber-

Point

Power take-off system–

Unspecified

SEAREV,Ecole

Centrale

de Nantes, France

The SEAREV is a wave-absorbing buoy similar in design to the PS Frog. The buoyoscillates with the waves, and its oscillations relative to a large internal mass are used togenerate power. The exact power take-off mechanism is unclear, but it may involve theuse of hydraulics. A series of mathematical simulations were used to refine the shape ofthe buoy, and the simulations indicated that the use of a latched control system (thatwould lock the mass in place during certain points of the wave cycle) would provideimproved performance. The final form of the buoy is mushroom-like, with a cylindricalinternal mass located in the lower section. It is unclear whether any scale model testingof the buoy design has taken place.